Word Count: 1059
Warnings: NA
Always Be Mine
"Will you stop," Harry said, battling at the hand that caressed his neck.
"Take a break," the owner of said hand murmured, replacing the hand with his lips.
"Severus—" Harry said, breaking off from the planned admonishment to let out a moan. "You're not playing fair at all."
"When have I ever said that I play fair?" Severus asked, his breath caressing Harry's ear.
"I need to—oh, right there—finish marking these essays, or we'll never make the reservation."
"Or, you could show me some attention now, we'll go and have dinner, and the essays will still be there tomorrow," Severus suggested, pulling Harry into a standing position so that he could wrap his arms around him.
Harry sighed, resting his head against Severus' shoulder. "We're probably not making the reservation, are we?"
Not bothering to reply, Severus chuckled before he captured Harry's lips with his own. Harry couldn't find it in himself to care.
And he was right, they didn't make the reservation.
…
"Harry, are you home?"
"In the kitchen," Harry called back, making Severus smile.
Harry rarely had the time or the energy to cook, but when he did, it was always worth it. Setting his cloak and shoes in their places by the door, he padded through the rooms they shared to the kitchen.
Wrapping his arms around Harry's waist, he stood behind him, taking in the delicious scents that were emanating all around him.
"What did I do to deserve this?" he asked.
"We never seem to make it out for dinner," Harry replied, smirking slightly. "So I thought that I'd cook for you instead. You tend to keep your hands to yourself when you know that I've got something in the oven."
Severus snorted. "What can I say? You should have been a chef. Besides, I'd much rather enjoy something that you've made, than something mass produced in a restaurant."
"Charmer," Harry murmured, before he pressed a kiss to Severus' cheek. "The bath is ready for you. Go and clean up, and the food should be ready by the time you're out."
"You look after me far too well. I'm likely to keep you forever if you keep doing that, you know," Severus said, kissing Harry's neck gently, before he released his hold.
As Severus padded out of the kitchen in the direction of the bathroom, Harry smiled to himself. "That's the plan."
…
Severus settled onto the sofa in front of the fire, pulling Harry with him, so that he was leaning into his side. It was Harry's favourite place to be.
Silence filled the room, broken only by the crackle of the fire, but it was comfortable. There was a time when Harry had thought that finding someone to talk to was special; since he'd started dating Severus, Harry had realised that it was finding someone to be silent with that was truly special.
"I missed you today," Severus murmured, pressing a kiss to Harry's head.
Harry shifted in his embrace, so that he could look up at him. "Did you wonder why I kept re-making that reservation, even though we always managed to be… otherwise engaged?"
Severus chuckled, but then nodded his head. "I wondered what could be so special about that particular restaurant."
Sliding his hand into his pocket, Harry pulled out a small box. "I've been waiting to give you this for three months."
Severus took the offered box, and flipped it open with a slightly shaking hand. He looked at the ring that sat inside, innocently resting on a bed of black satin.
"Is this…?"
"It is. For a long time, I thought that I wanted a wife, and kids, and a white picket fence," Harry admitted. "You've proven to me that I don't need any of that. I love you, Severus, and I don't want to spend a night without you, for the rest of my life. Will you bond with me?"
…
"Do you remember what you said to me, when you proposed?" Severus asked Harry out of the blue, one evening a few weeks later.
They were each sitting at their respective desks, each of them working on the piles of essays they'd assigned to their students.
"Of course I do," Harry replied, looking up from the one he'd been marking and arching his eyebrow. "But which part are we talking about?"
"That you wanted a wife, and kids, and a white picket fence."
"Sev—"
"It's possible, you know? Well. Perhaps not the 'wife' part, but the rest… there's adoption… we could buy a house, even one with a picket fence… you don't have to give anything up to be with me."
Harry smiled softly, and stood up, moving across the room to lean against the edge of Severus' desk, directly in front of him.
"When I said that, it was… I was trying to explain to you what I thought that I needed… normality, I suppose. Nuclear family life, so to speak. Trust me when I tell you that you're all I need to be happy, Severus. I don't need the kids, or the house, or anything else. I only need you."
Severus wrapped his arms around Harry's waist and tugged him close. "I just don't want you to miss out on anything."
"If adoption is something you want, we can talk about it," Harry conceded. "But truly, I enjoy what we have now. I enjoy the freedom of being able to holiday when we're not working. I enjoy being able to go out, any evening we want, when we're not working. I enjoy the freedom of making love to you whenever, and wherever the mood takes us."
Severus looked up at Harry, a smile on his face, his eyes twinkling.
"Hmm, I enjoy that too. Particularly that last one. How about we give into that freedom right now, and go and christen the rug in front of the fireplace?"
"I think it's only classed as christening the first time you do it…"
"Then maybe I just want to see you splayed out, naked and ready for me, on our living room floor."
Harry moaned softly. Leaning into Severus, he nipped at his jawline. "I'm pretty sure that that's the best idea you've ever had."
"I love you, Harry."
"Not as much as I love you. Make me yours, Severus."
"You'll always be mine."